Modeled after an immense dancehall in Chicago, the El Patio ballroom was one of Lakeside's major attractions. Decades after this photo was taken, current owner Rhoda Krasner remembers sitting with the cashier at the soda fountain, watching revelers dance to the likes of Count Basie and the Dorsey Brothers.

(Photo: Courtesy Western History Photo Collection - Denver Public Library)

Owner Ben Krasner rechristened Lakeside Park's body of water Lake Rhoda when his daughter was born, a moniker that Rhoda Krasner admits used to embarrass her when she was a little girl. The lake's only occupants now, according to Krasner, are "popcorn-fed carp."

(Photo: Courtesy Western History Photo Collection - Denver Public Library)

Lakeside was one of a flurry of amusement parks built in the style of the 1893 Chicago Exposition. These 'White Cities' featured large promenades, ornate architecture, and thousands of blazing light bulbs "which were meant to advertise electricity," Lakeside operations manager Brenda Fishman says.

(Photo: Courtesy Western History Photo Collection - Denver Public Library)

The Satellite is one of owner Rhoda Krasner's favorite rides. "I had never been on a plane until I went off to college, and I was so excited because I thought coming across country I was going to have a Satellite ride the whole way," Krasner says.

The Matterhorn is one of the few rides in the park that has its own soundtrack. "A lot of places have piped artificial music throughout the whole place," Fishman says. "But we've felt that the real sounds and sights are part of the experience."

The Wild Chipmunk is one of Lakeside's two full-sized roller coasters. The ride was originally called the Wild Mouse. But owner Ben Krasner renamed it after visiting the mountains and watching the antics of Colorado's chipmunks.

The Tower of Jewels is perhaps the park's most iconic feature. The structure, attached to the defunct Casino Theater, is embedded with thousands of incandescent bulbs. The last time Lakeside 'relamped' the tower, the effort required five young mountain climbers and two summers.

Lakeside's miniature train, the Zephyr, travels around Lake Rhoda presenting scenic vistas back to the attractions. "It seemed like you went from Denver to San Francisco, on that long trip around the lake, " Lakeside fan Dennis Gallagher says.

The old sign still greets drivers as they pull into Lakeside's parking lot. Fishman and Krasner say they often hear rumors about the park closing or being sold to a developer. "I don't know what makes people think that," Fishman says. "They've been saying that for decades and decades and decades. But we're still here."

(Photo: CPR/Megan Verlee)

If you’ve ever driven Interstate 70 west of Denver, you’ve seen the tall stucco tower and white wooden roller coaster that are the distinctive landmarks of Lakeside Amusement Park.

The attraction is more than 100 years old and sits in the town of Lakeside, adjacent to Denver.

I recently visited Lakeside Amusement Park to hear about its past and present from several people who know it very well. Here's what they told me:

Brenda Fishman, who works in operations at Lakeside:

"The reaction I get the most from who've lived in the area, or have been around, or seen the park from the outside but have never actually been in Lakeside -- the first comment I get is 'Oh my goodness. I didn't realize it was so big. And I didn't realize it was so nice and so pretty. I think a lot of people from the outside see the chain-link fence and the old, big, white building and things like that and don't have any concept of the lakes and the trees and the flowers and everything that's inside."

Rhoda Krasner, general manager of Lakeside:

"My father came to Lakeside Amusement Park from Union Station. He operated the newsstands and heard that Lakeside was looking for someone to run food service. So in the late 19-teens, he arrived at Lakeside Park. During the Depression, the originating company of Lakeside went into bankruptcy. My father made a bid for the park and all of a sudden in the middle of the 1930s found that he was operating an amusement park."

"The reason they put the park here rather than in Denver is because Denver was anti-drink, especially in north Denver. The owners of Lakeside were sort of Germanic background and they wanted to be able to serve beer and have a German beer garden."

"Lakeside is Salt of the Earth, as the Bible says. Lakeside is for the working people. The carpenters, the laborers, and the firemen like my dad, and the policemen's kids."

Listen to the audio player above to hear more about Lakeside Amusement Park.